My Travel Journal
by kunai is a shinobis bestfriend
Summary: A journal of my travels...
1. 34,000 ft Over the Pacific Ocean

AN: Hey All! Sorry for the drop in updates I've been really busy with family, work, getting ready to travel, and then actually traveling. As a little apology to you guys I'm posting my travel journal with the hopes that it inspires you to travel! Once again Sorry! and have an awesome day!

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><p>34,000 ft Over the Pacific Ocean<p>

9:44PM Monday, September 29, 2014

As I look out of the airplane cabin into the black, I still can't get over the excitement and dread I have been feeling over the past few weeks. This trip will last four weeks, and it will be the longest adventure I have taken as of yet. To be honest, sitting here looking out the window and listening to the rumble of the plane's engines my thoughts turn towards home. While it has only been a few hours since leaving San Francisco I can't help but wonder what are they doing at this exact moment, it is odd that I am feeling homesick so soon into the trip, I have been on long trips before and had not begun to feel homesick until the middle or near the end of the trips... Maybe it is because this journey will be measured in months not weeks that leads me to feel this way. I will think more on this in the coming days. We are currently 4,756 miles away from our destination of Taipei, Taiwan and I must end this entry now because the lady sitting next to me is giving me a death glare because I have the light on and also because she has been reading over my shoulder, so until another day...

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><p>AN: Thanks for reading! and have an awesome day!<p> 


	2. Thermal Valley, Taipei, Taiwan

AN: Thanks for reading! and have an awesome day!

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><p>Thermal Valley, Taipei, Taiwan<p>

5:49PM Thursday, October 2, 2014

As I sit here in these warm waters resting my weary feet listening to the water run by I am almost at peace, but sadly this location is slightly marred by the smell of sulfur, green sulfur to be exact. But I suppose without the sulfur you wouldn't get the warm and delightful geothermal waters that I am currently resting my feet in, so it's a give and take. My homesickness has finally passed now replaced with what feels like an actual sickness, I don't know what it is yet I just feel unwell but I wouldn't have it any other way. I remember a time, when I was a child, I had this sense of wonder for the world around me. I think in all actuality during this period of time I was happiest I ever was so far in my life, some moments came close like the late nights with Ashley, one of the people I consider a loved one, or the sense of brotherhood I felt when I worked at the bar. But that's why I love to travel, it lets me feel that sense of wonderment and happiness again, which makes me feel a warmth in my heart far greater and more indescribable than the water that I am currently soaking my feet in. And with that I think I should end it here and fully enjoy these waters so until next time...


	3. Sansia District, Xinbei City, Taiwan

AN: Thanks for reading! and have an awesome day!

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><p>Sansia District, Xinbei City, Taiwan<p>

12:14AM Sunday, October 10, 2014

Sorry I haven't written anything lately I had lost myself in my travels. I am currently unable to sleep, I guess I'm feeling somewhat pensive at the moment, looking back at my last entry I am reminded about my failure with my feelings for Ashley. What I mean is that the feelings are not the failure but how I handled the situation. The night we spent together in bed after truly getting back in touch will always be one of my happy memories, but I guess to tell this story one must start at the beginning. I first laid eyes on her during freshman year of high school, on the first day of the health and driver's Ed class. I was sitting in the back of the room and in she walked, her porcelain skin and blonde dyed hair shining in the sunlight coming through the doorway, I actually almost didn't notice the two girls, Rovene and Katelyn, walk in with her. I find it a little funny now that I almost didn't notice them because I would later end up being friends with all of them plus four other girls all equally beautiful in different ways and to round off this group of beauties sans yours truly our group also included four other guys whom two would become my best friends during freshman and sophomore years, one of these guys would play a part in me joining the group, but I digress. Getting back to shiny skin and hair, she and her friends made their way to the back of the room where there was still enough room to sit their group, and it was her that sat first, right next to me. To be honest at first I only thought she was just pretty and after she sat down I paid her no mind but the thing that piqued my interest in her was after sitting down, she turned towards me and asked if I was doing ok because she noticed that I was somewhat new to the school district, so I guess the first thing I loved about her was her kindnesses. In the interest of time and sleep I'm going to fast forward a bit, so awhile later after getting to know her more and her breaking up with a guy that was kind of a douche. I waited a little bit for her to recover before I made my move to ask her out, I had everything planned and set , it would be a grand gesture to woo her as is the norm for high school. But for all my plans I did not take into account one thing, and that was tragedy. Her father passed away in the morning on the very same day I was going to ask her out. Maybe I should have taken this as an omen or sign but once again getting off topic. So naturally I put aside all my plans and tried to be there for her the best I could, but it was hard, she didn't come to school for a few days and when someone did pick up their house phone her mother was still overcome with grief to pass along my sympathies and message, so I waited until I would be able to see her again, and when I did, I didn't say anything at first I just gave her a hug. And with that hug I tried to tell her everything I wanted to say to her, how I loved her, how she was not alone in this, how I would be the ear she could vent at or a punching bag for her to release her frustration on, I didn't care I would have done anything to make her smile again, and while we were standing there I would like to think she got my message. Because after that we were much closer but we remained friends because, at least on my part, I didn't want to take advantage of her heartbreak. So a few months after this is when my life started taking a turn for the worst, my family was just barely getting by, work was cutting into sleep and homework, so my grades dropped like a ton of rocks, and the crap/attempted shamming I got from some teachers and school administrators started to fill my heart with hatred and rage. I mean I hated everyone; myself, my life, the teachers, the school, my family, my friends but oddly enough I couldn't find myself hating her. So doing what I did best I just bottled everything up and put a smile on my face. To be honest I truly don't know what I would have done to myself or others but to my eternal gratitude, I don't know if she sensed something was wrong or she was just being herself but she took the time everyday after school to just talk with me, and with that she gave me peace in a time of hate and it was at this time I made a vow, I would always care about her no matter what because she saved me. So fast forwarding once again a bit, I made the horrible decision to express my feelings for her in a email, in the end I don't know how I came to such a bad decision, I just wanted closure so I could move on or something like that. The outcome I wanted was not the one I got because I didn't even get an outcome, she read the email and didn't even reply or call back and that hurt me the most because as my friend she should have at least just put me out of my misery and said " Sorry, I don't feel the same way maybe we should just be friends" not leave me hanging in silence. I'm not going to say she played a very large role in me dropping out of high school maybe a small one mostly it was to help my family but I did decide that this was how I would get my closure. So I broke off all communication with her and I guess you could call me a bona fide coward because I ignored a call from her soon after. So after a year or two I bumped into her at the community college I was attending we spoke a bit, on what I couldn't even tell you. But lo and behold I dropped out of community college as well, maybe it was a subconscious thing or something, I don't know. So this time fast forward a couple of years she adds me on Facebook and tells me she is living in San Francisco now and we talk a bit and hang out a couple times, so finally one day she invites me over to hang out and watch a movie, during the whole time she was acting a little odd, and by the time the movie was done it was somewhat late so while I'm getting ready to go back home she suddenly asked if I wanted to sleep there, I said ok and started to getting ready to sleep on the couch then she said I sleep in her bed. Now most would jump at this chance,when a girl invites you up to her bed, I know high school me would have, but during the last fast forward I dated a girl, Yumi, for a long while and to be honest she shared many of the same qualities as Ashley, a surrogate I suppose. but I loved her without reservation, pouring everything into the relationship, but sadly in the end she had to move back home to japan and I was fully prepared to do the whole long distance thing but to keep things short in the end she just left me a letter telling me that she was sorry and she was breaking up with me. It was the first time I felt true heartbreak, I had a bad case of hurt feeling with Ashley's no reply, Yumi's letter felt like someone drove a spike into my heart and twisted. Between the worst physical pain I ever felt in my life and the heartbreak I would choose the physical every single time. So when Ashley invited me up she knew I was still somewhat reeling from the heartbreak because it was one of the things we had previously talked about, so when she started dropping hints I didn't know what to do, so I decided I would just keep things at very good friends level and work towards whatever because I couldn't take the chance yet not so soon. Although I must admit the sixteen hours we spent pretending to sleep and then talking in bed will always be part of my happy memories. A couple weeks later she invited me to party, so during the passing time I was working through my feelings and I thought I could try again with her, once again long story short I walked in on her hooking up with some random guy... Ain't that a bitch, am I right? And thus the second heartbreak of my life. I have to admit the first helped me deal with the second so I suppose it gets easier with each time but I shudder at the thought of how many you must go through to not feel anything. Now that I am thoroughly depressed I will end it here. Until next time...


	4. Flight B0277 40215 ft over South China

AN: Thanks for reading! and have an awesome day!

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><p>Flight B0277 40215 ft over South China Sea<p>

11:36AM Thursday, October 16, 2014

Once again I find myself in the air, this time Taiwan is at my back and Malaysia to my front. With all the annoying things one must go through in order to fly, this view makes it all worth it. The is sun shinning bright in the sky, and I am looking down at the white fluffy clouds as they hang above the crisp blue ocean waters. If I could experience this view anytime I wish life would be grand. Sadly I must keep this short today, because last night I did not get any sleep whatsoever and with a view as relaxing as this I'm about to fall asleep. Until next time...


	5. Paternal Grandfather's Farm, Malaysia

AN: Thanks for reading! and have an awesome day!

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><p>Paternal Grandfather's Farm, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia<p>

7:50PM Thursday, October 16, 2014

As I sit here listening to the rain fall to the earth and watching the occasional bolt of lighting arc across the sky, I am at peace. It feels like this calm could go on forever, that is until I have to nuke another mosquito with bug spray before they can stick me again. I have to admit last time I was here the mosquitoes latched on to me like the latest health craze, so this time is actually not that bad, although this time I am much more generous in the application of bug spray in my battle against these little bastards, so who knows maybe it's all the same. Speaking of last time, last time I was here it was for the funeral of my paternal grandfather and the time before that was for the funeral of my paternal grandmother, I am very glad that I am here under much more happier circumstances. I am very close to my maternal grandparents and to my shame and regret I can't say the same about my paternal grandparents, but even though I never really got to know them, looking back into my memories I remember their eyes were filled with happiness and pride and that alone assuages my shame and regret. Sadly I must end it here, I have to make a tactical advance back into the house or I risk being overwhelmed by my foes, the mosquitoes. Until next time...


	6. Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia

AN: Thanks for reading! and have an awesome day!

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><p>Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia<p>

10:25PM Friday, October 17, 2014

Today I stopped to help a fellow traveler who looked lost, sure I stopped and helped many others before but this time was different. This time was the first time I actually took the time to learn about them. She was from Brittany, France and her name was Manon. I was randomly walking down Lebuh Chulia and on a whim I made a right and down a block I saw her standing on the corner with her little map, fun fact oddly enough by the end of the night her little map with so little detail was better than my big map with a bunch of details, symbols, and what not it, so that shows you never disregard something that seems not as useful just because it is less and not more but back onto topic we walked around a mall to look for a new camera to replace her lost one, after she decided that she would look for a new camera at a later time we went and ate dinner at a random place we walked past. A little after dinner it started raining so we kept wandering around finally finding ourselves in Little India where we celebrated Diwali and after wandering out of Little India we proceeded to get lost for a while walking the streets of Georgetown until she found our way to her hostel where we finally parted ways. Man I have to say she probably the one of the coolest girls I have ever met and that I probably developed a tiny bit of a crush. But sadly to my regret I forgot to get her contact information, maybe Lady Luck will bless me once again so that I could remedy that. So once again, until next time.


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